Week in the Trossachs

Nice break in Aberfoyle but nice to be back. It was magic on the bike during the middle and end of the week where I collared one of the best circuits I've ever ridden. After a heaving start up the verticality of Dukes Pass where the road rises 220m over 4km (I don't know why it doesn't feature in the 100 great British climbs book), it's left at Achray to Loch Katrine and giving it plenty along the northern edge on a single track road with virtually no traffic for 12 miles before steering south past Stronachlachler Pier and returning on the back road to Aberfoyle past Kinlochard. They've resurfaced some of it which is super -fast, but there are enough potholes here and there elsewhere to keep you focused. Thirty miles or so.

Only managed a couple of short runs but a little more than 100 miles total on the bike made it a week to remember. Loads of bikies. Even a few shafts of sunlight and the occasional rainbow. Thought about stopping late for the Nigel Barge 10k, but too many big dinners have left me a bit Billy Buntered...

Glaisdale Rigg Fell Race

Its hard to imagine such a contrast in the weather from last weeks Captain Cook Challenge to today's Glaisdale Fell Race. There was a biggish turnout for this 8 miler. Its a medium length, medium steepness classified race. I wasn't expecting to go into the red zone during it and set off with about 100 others down the road from the village. The route then climbs steadily up onto the top of the North York Moors.

I should have replaced the bumbag with the camera as it was glorious up on t'moors. Heathcliff and the Baskervilles were well tucked up and it was only the odd grouse that made its presence known as we made our way across the wide metalled track with neat short grass along the edges crimped by rabbits and the occassional dimple from a horsehoe. There was little wind and it was warm.

It took a good while to get going but I soon found myself chasing a Bingley, Loftus and a 3rd runner who were 'sort of' together. I eventually caught them and took on a gell which seemed like a good idea. We ran along a farm and then up through a dry river channel within a dark conifer wood. It was stunning, running on a carpet of needles and enveloped in trees above with rods of bright sunlight breaking through the gaps between trees and branches. It was uphill though and the only tough bit I think in the race and I struggled to stay with the two, Bingley runner having dropped back a little. 

I had a sweat on which was nice considering it's March. The course then followed a moorland track along the top to Snowdon Nab. There was a little plantation of grey tree stumps all stripped of bark and regimented in short rows. It looked like a small graveyard of stumps and was surrounded by green moss.

Loftus man had dropped back a little but neither him nor Bingley man were too far behind. Unattached runner let me past at a stile saying he wasn't sure of the way. It occured to me, as a I ploughed on through the reedy grass and heather toward the finish, that I didn't know the way either but as the course dropped steeply I felt I was almost there. I worked steadily down the long track to the ford at the bottom of the valley and asked some folk there where the finish was. They advised it was back the way I'd come and I'd missed the tape marker where runners evidently were supposed to cut left. As I ran back the 60 or 70 yards up the hill I saw all 3 lads cutting across the little footbridge and having lost 3 places I felt a bit grumpy, walking the wee last bit up the hill. I spent the next 20 minutes marshalling at the junction where I'd gone wrong to try and make me feel better. And I did. After all, thats fell racing!


So...cracking day for a run and I live to fight another day. I'll sure be back next year, this time with 'The Knowledge'.  I hope the weather will be the same.

Captain Cook Challenge Sportive 2012

Reality was out of the room when I entered the 94 mile Captain Cook Challenge ‘Mega-ride’ Sportive. When it returned, however,  it gave me a full-on dressing down and, this morning, as I arrived at Saltburn for a 9am start, it was the shorter, more modest  60 mile ‘Midi’ event in the North York Moors that I signed on for.  I'd also seen the forecast.

The good Captain made his name around Australia and New Zealand. He might have discovered Hawaii (although the Hawaiiians had discovered it a wee while before him).  What made him travel to these warm distant shores?  And just what were his bike handling skills like? ....After 4 hours riding in conditions which I can’t begin to describe....Ok, I’ll try.  Shocking. Awful. There, I’ve described them now...I think I can imagine his thought process. 

Around 100 of us set off at 9.30am in light rain and grey, heavy skies for a cycle sportive around the moors. It was my first of these organised road events. It’s not a race, but you get a number and you're expected not to stop off at every tea shop or photo-opportunity along the way. There are also some pretty handy cyclists in the vicinity.  I started talking to a bloke from Leeds as we led around 8 others up through the flatlands of Guisborough, Great Ayton and Kildale before things split on the first of the steep climbs. Predictably, near the top,  I stopped to take a few photos. You don’t lose much time when you run and snap. On a bike, however, with a pair of sopping wet gloves and numb fingers things can get pretty messy. In cold weather it’s the feet and hands that get cold and after 20 miles I was soaked. I should say with my new SC Gothic jersey on, I felt bullish and rode on with panache. Wet panache.

As we climbed out of Commondale and headed east to Danby then south to Fryup it was getting a tad chilly. The thermometer had dropped to nothing degrees and at the turn (30 miles) the clag was down and the rain had turned to snow.

Riders came and went along the ride. I was pleased to stop at the checkpoint at Castleton village hall at 34 miles.  Riders jostled for radiator space. Some clearly had given up and wandered across the boards with empty eyes wringing their gear out. When, after 10 minutes, they wheeled the tea out the mood lifted and it went some way to stopping the bouts of uncontrollable shivering witnessed around parts of the hall. I spent around 20 minutes mooching around the place, hopping from radiator to radiator and being my jovial self said to one rider ‘ Well, it’ll mostly be downhill now and it can’t get any worse’. 

As we climbed into a slight northerly headwind out of Castleton and down into Kildale the icy snow and sleet intensified and made it very difficult to see. My high vis. glasses were steaming up on the inside and icing up on the outside. I couldn’t feel my feet.  My fingers weren’t working. This was a bit worrying and managing to work the brakes became a luxury.  I was surprised I was still pedaling. My bike was looking up at me with pleading eyes. Any thought of taking photos was a joke and I began singing to myself as I felt the cold numbness creeping up my shins.  Artic.

The sleet was gathering on all the gear and with 10 miles to go it was just a case of trying to keep warm. I think ‘fatigue’ was in the equation as well but it sensibly kept its head down and mouth shut. Bodies on bikes were few and far between and the cars roared past once we hit the outskirts of Teesside kindly spraying riders with slush.

I finished in 4 hrs and some seconds and won’t bore you with the burning pain endured as my senses crept back after a hot shower and litres of tea. The cake was good though. I did the Hexham Hobble Fell race in 2005 and Ben Nevis in 2009, both in atrocious conditions. I can now add this event to the short and lugubrious list.  

Captain Cook Challenge?....Change the’ Cook’ to ‘Scott’ and you might be nearer the mark.  Well done to the organisers and especially the motor bike outrider. Hero.

Cupar & Cruella Devilla

I had my own wee Festival of Fife this weekend. Some of the fast times posted in the past at the Cupar 5 hadn’t gone unnoticed and I thought it would be good to do to see where my form is at present (as if I didn’t know).  The previous speedy times weren’t,  however, down to the fast flat course, which is an out and back from Cupar along a 'B' Class road. Instead it is, as the organisers from Fife AC advised, because the course has been 180yds short until this year. I’m pleased however that nobody had told me this before the start as I lined up with 300 runners for two and a half miles into a stiff breeze.  There were some top lads at the front but my target was a more modest sub-30m. A tall order given my poor start to the season.  

There’s not much I can say other than that after the starter started the race I got my head down and grafted. I tried to find a bit of shelter in places where I could behind the 2^nd lady and others for a little while and then a tall fife athlete near to the turn. The course is a little undulating and of course when you’re running close to your aerobic capacity you can’t feel the benefit of a tailwind, but turning in 15:22, I told myself it was mostly downhill and that I had a huge big wind behind and I collapsed in a heap to finish 29:53. The young Jarvie came cruising past at Mile 4 but I knew I had to peg things back to avoid any unpleasantness in the ‘wheels coming off’ department later on. It was mission accomplished. I celebrated my 42^nd place by running back up the course for a couple of km then back to the hall in Cupar for cake and tea.   

The next day after an ‘interesting’ evening in deepest Falkland I sat with the Hotel chef and a pot of tea pouring over a map. The 15km trail race I entered said Kincardine, but I was under the impression it was Glenrothes. After a google check it was evident that the Carnegie event was almost an hour away so I scoffed my scrambled eggs and made off to make sure I got there in good time. As it was I had an hour to spare when I arrived and scrutinised the town for a cafe but to no avail. By the time I realised the race HQ had one,  it was too near race time and I was having a slight bout of controlled anxiety trying to figure out how to attach my chip to my rapidly disintegrating Salomons (They’re our kids actually, but don’t tell her). These fiendish shoes have a wire loop and I ended up tying a bit of string through the wire to hang the chip on.

The setting at Tulieallan was excellent and the course which weaved its way over ‘uppy and downy’ track, a little road and past one or two small, scenic lochans was well marshalled and fairly flat with only one long drag halfway through.

I stopped once or twice to take some photos but at 3 miles started to feel tired and at 7m faded badly and was slowing sufficiently for 3 whom I passed earlier to come past. However I knew it was going to be a tall order given yesterdays efforts and I was happy to plough a long and lone furrow to the end.  Coffee, a bottle of bear and then 2 more bottles in the spot prize.  Result. Again, a top event and one not to miss next year.

(Photos all from Sunday's race)

       

Royal Signals Relays 2012

There was a good turnout today at the Signals Relays at Hetton Lyons. This included myself running in an incomplete team, so no pressure there then. You still have your pride to run for as I told my team-mate for the day. As it was I got round the 2 lap, 2.3mile course unconvincingly in 13:06 but looked good on the first lap before it all turned to mush early in the second to finish 30th-ish after leg 1.
Fife next weekend so better pull my (compression) socks up.
For the Random Photos collection click on the Gallery link on the right.....too many runners to click and camera still on the blink.  Results up now on the New Marske Harriers Site.   www.new-marske-harriers.co.uk/index.php/en/

Onions

I'm sitting here eating a baked onion straight out the oven and burning my tongue into submission. What price a late dinner?!
Decided to turn out and run yesterdays north east cross country league. The venue at Wrekenton, Gateshead is an old colliery and spoil heap thats not been fully reclaimed and being on top of a hill its quite exposed so the ground was solid. Icy in places. There was virtually no wind though, which was a saving grace and once you warmed up, not a bad day out at all. Around 250 of us set off in the slow pack. My aim was to get through the event in one piece. Problems of running lethargy and lack of energy over the last fortnight have been put down to a bug and although feeling abit more energised, I'm still way off the form. I have got a packed calendar though (at least in my head) and so trogged around the course with no distinction but nevertheless, mission accomplished.

Today was better. I had planned a 50 mile ride and did just that, albeit 35 miles were courtesy of the Northumbrian Tri Club who I bumped into early on in the ride and tagged along with. Seem like a good crowd. We took in a few of the Simonside climbs but nothing too demanding and I finished off the ride on my own through a couple of the coastal colliery towns. Hope that the form continues to build this week. The forecast's improving.

I've just stuck in another onion in foil to join the roast in the oven. Why not? -there's plenty of room in there    

Plod

It looks like it could be quite a sizeable week in terms of mileage with 44 on the clock already since Thursday. Saturdays run was crisp, scenic and the 3 of us got round the 18 miles and 2500ft of hills in a little under 2.25 while the snow held off. Yesterday my legs were a bit stiff and it was a plod of 6.5m through the woods and around the fields late on. There was around an inch of snow in places but its pretty much gone now from here although there's plenty of ice around. Need to keep this momentum going for the weekend and see how we get on.